UN Security Council discusses Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

The UN Security Council held an open debate on the theme "Conflict Prevention", a statement posted on its website said.

The report notes that the Permanent Representative of Azerbaijan in the UN Yashar Aliyev spoke in the public debate.

In his speech Aliyev said that Armenia's unconstructiveness in the negotiations, its interest inmaintaining the status quo, its evasion of the Madrid peace plan, its refusal to comply with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, its policy of ruthless ethnic cleansing and its latest provocative actions aimed at undermining the peace process - all these provide the strongest grounds to impose substantial sanctions against Armenia by the international community.

The continued presence of Armenia's armed forces on the occupied territories of Azerbaijan remains the biggest threat to the peace process.

Therefore, first and foremost, the armed forces of Armenia must withdraw from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

The earlier Armenia realizes this; the sooner peace, stability, and predictability can be restored in the region.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented four U.N. Security Council resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.